Typhoon Bavi has just swept through coastal China, and another major typhoon is making landfall within days. For many of us, “typhoon season” is not just a weather report — it’s a shared rhythm of warnings, waiting, and wondering. For others, typhoons are distant news clips: dramatic footage of waves crashing over seawalls, flooded streets, and people huddled indoors.

This week, we’re talking about all of it. Not just the storms themselves, but what they reveal — about how we prepare, how we cope, and how we think about the natural world we live in. Whether you have been through a dozen typhoons or have only ever watched them on a screen, your perspective belongs here.

Below are twelve questions in four groups. Pick any that speak to you — no need to answer them all!

 A. Before the Storm

1. What is the first thing you do when you hear a typhoon is heading your way? Do you check your phone, stock up on food, tape the windows — or just shrug and wait? Walk us through your personal routine.

2. Describe the atmosphere in the hours before a typhoon arrives. The sky, the air, the mood around you — what changes? If you have never experienced this, how do you imagine it would feel?

3. Have you ever prepared for a typhoon that never came, or turned out much weaker than expected? How did you feel afterward — relieved, annoyed, or something else entirely?

B. During the Storm

4. Take us to your most vivid memory of being inside while a typhoon raged outside. What did you hear? What did you see through the window? What were you doing, and who were you with?

5. Have you ever had to go outside during a typhoon — even briefly? Why? What was that experience like? If you have not, what is the closest you have come to seeing a typhoon’s force in person?

6. For those who have not lived through a typhoon directly: what is the most striking image or story you have seen in the news or in videos of a typhoon? What made it stick with you?

C. After the Storm

7. What does the world look like the morning after a typhoon passes? Fallen trees, flooded streets, eerily quiet air — describe the scene you have witnessed or would expect.

8. In the aftermath, who or what surprised you most — either in a good way or a bad way? A neighbor who helped, a system that failed, a small kindness that stuck with you?

9. Typhoon Bavi hit several coastal provinces across China this summer. Did it affect you or anyone you know? What stories about its impact have you heard from the news or social media?

D. Beyond the Storm

10. Experiencing a typhoon can change how you see nature. After going through a strong storm, do you feel more humble, more anxious, more prepared — or all of the above? Has a typhoon ever made you rethink something?

11. Compared to ten years ago, do you think your city or community is better prepared for typhoons today? What has improved, and what still needs work? (Consider early warning systems, infrastructure, community organization.)

12. What would you want someone from a place that never has typhoons to understand about living with them? If you have never experienced one yourself, what is something you genuinely wonder about?

Mini Vocabulary: Typhoon Edition

Term Definition

typhoon                          (n.) A tropical cyclone in the western Pacific Ocean

make landfall                  (v.) (Of a storm) reach the coast and move inland

storm surge                    (n.) An abnormal rise of seawater pushed ashore by a storm

torrential rain                  (n.) Extremely heavy, intense rainfall

gale                                (n.) A very strong wind — often used in weather warnings as “gale-force winds”

evacuation                      (n.) The organized movement of people away from a dangerous area

power outage                  (n.) A loss of electricity supply to an area

flooding                           (n.) Water covering land that is normally dry

aftermath                         (n.) The situation that exists after a destructive event

weather the storm          (idiom) To survive a difficult situation and come through it

When Bavi was lunching on Zhejiang I had travelled to Sichuan,  a place that is far away from the sea and the typhoon.  However,  my father was in Zhejiang,  so I phoned him frequently and reminded him of food stocking and safety. 

some days before Bavi arrived I had phoned my father and asked him to prepare food and water,  but he didn't do it.  It had worried me,  but the typhoon turned out weak when it truly arrived,  which is a true relief for me. 

It appears that typhoons are becoming stronger and arrive more frequently year by year.  It's time we took better care of the environment. 

I remember when Bavi came to Liaoning, my family and I went to the supermarket to buy vegetables, fruits and meats. And we also checked our emergency battery and power bank, making sure that they were full of electricity.

No